Mass Movement Dance Studios, Brighton, MA (seen by way of livestream).
April 26, 2025.
A night-length work with a powerful prevailing theme and environment, or a “combined invoice” of various works: I take pleasure in each buildings for what they every need to take pleasure in. The latter typically additionally comes with a thread or threads that join the person works: in temper, in perspective, in style. But, typically, not at all times – as with Alive Dance Collective’s SHIFT – such packages supply a notable smorgasbord of works, with none specific high quality or “strategy” prevailing.
Selection is the spice of life, they are saying. These packages display that such a bounty can delight the inventive palette with many various flavors to savor. The Boston-based group is definitely a part of town’s bounty of smaller-scale, but stalwart dance corporations – persevering with so as to add their very own sugar and spice with every new program.
The memorable up stream, from Alexandria Nunweiler in collaboration with the dancers, opened this system. Nocturnal crickets and ethereal choral singing within the rating (“Choir and Crickets” by David Russo) stuffed the house. Dancers moved low to the bottom, rolling in unbiased timing, then discovered unison gesture as they rose. Within the quiet of mystical evening, one thing gelled. Concentric rotating circles enhanced that sense of cohesion rising. Spines had been fluid and serpentine as they modified relationship with ranges in house and with one another.
A shift in vitality got here with a rating change; their timing quickened to match the music (“Aqueous Transmission” by Incubus). A decrescendo got here after the crescendo, nevertheless, and shortly they once more moved gradual and straightforward. That cohesion discovered, they collectively moved via this cycle of rising and falling vitality. up stream exemplified work that’s merely viscerally evocative, definitely lots to please and intrigue.
Twilight Individuals, danced and choreographed by Shira Weiss: a solo seemingly with deep significance, but additionally abstraction making it out there to diverse meanings. Weiss, seated on a plain bench, repeated a gesture whereas voices within the rating rose robust and clear. As an strategy used all through the work, with diverse motion vocabulary at completely different factors, the repetition grew to become virtually meditative.
Earlier than lengthy, motion grew in dimension, energy and the shapes layered inside it. Weiss learn from a prayer scarf after which donned it over their shoulders, swaying backbone laterally because the tassels rippled. They returned to the bench on the finish. In its devotional, soothingly meditative high quality, it was a refreshingly distinctive work.
Audrey Hatas’ Murmuration continued the candy and soothing choices, with a contact of implied historical past and custom. The dancers got here off quasi balletic, in skirts and with actions reminiscing the classical – but had been additionally barefoot and free in their very own qualities: spines simple fairly than absolutely lifted, ft softly expressed fairly than “cashew”-pointed.
Timing and staging introduced comparable qualities: deliberately formed, but not compelled. The life already contained in the clay of the dancers was revealed, as Michelangelo would possibly muse. Within the softening of the classical and the natural, soulful really feel at hand, the work mirrored one thing of Isadora Duncan’s work and ethos.
The following work, Roll, Flip, Toss, Jam by Katrina Conte in collaboration with the dancers, introduced us into the delightfully zany. The duet companions, Brenna Banister and Katherine Berman, dance-partied it out whereas mixing in some conventionally modern footwork for good measure. Eager kinetic shaping advanced as a jazzy voice rose within the rating: reverse facings, canon timing, motion vocabulary shuffled and reassembled. There was enjoyable, but in addition rigor. And so it’s with art-making; we discover the steadiness between the 2 – and, finally, the ultimate product of our work.
Lila Ruth Klaus’ Rage/Launch got here subsequent, providing softness but in addition vitality and tenacity. Ensemble members collected into the house with their very own motion, becoming a member of the rising form of posed our bodies. Motion constructed: dancers coming out and in of unison, rising tall after which discovering the ground, gesturing in direction of and away from each other.
Kinetic ease stuffed the stage, but – undergirded by a repeated concord within the rating (“The King” by Anjimile) – agitation resonated via the house. Even so, even with their pace escalating in accordance with the rating and within the face of that sonic turbulence, they embodied ease. The ensemble ended with a unison clap, arms up excessive. They’d stand robust in being the calm amidst an setting attempting to strip them of it.
With gentle acoustic and a wistful voice within the rating, motion a bit extra ethereally balletic, the environment was softer with Paige Befeler’s Wildflower – coming simply after intermission. However there was additionally a pathos: spines releasing again after which whipping ahead with a change in path, steps ahead and again evoking uncertainty, gaze clear and emotive. On the identical, the group’s cohesion was clear. No matter they had been going through, collectively or individually, they had been on no account alone – and that felt simply as significant.
Alexandria Nunweiler’s Subtly Alice, a dance movie, ushered in a bit extra intriguing abstraction. Montage video interweaved exploration of sunshine and shadow with motion: gesture, bigger physique shapes, easy gaze with moments of stillness. A mysterious and chilling string chord enhanced the thriller within the ether, enigma filling all senses (rating from Agnes Obel).
Accented gesture, repeated time and again, complemented ambient pressure. Arms sliding down a wall evinced a looking out amidst the stress and abstraction – maybe discovering grounding and understanding when it appeared in any other case in brief provide. To finish, the digicam appeared down on a spiraling staircase, a dancer rising from their seat – maybe searching for such decision for themselves.
1519, 1216, choreographed and danced by Katherine Berman, saved alive and nicely the uncertainty of the prior piece – but additionally added one thing extra somber and soulful. On knees, Berman gestured: reaching, looking out, built-in and commanding in her motion. Rising, she introduced that search farther out into house. Arms folding reminisced prayer: a devotional high quality to her search. Lastly she rested, seated and searching ahead. Relaxation is, in spite of everything, important for that searching for to proceed.
Much more of that somber soulfulness got here with the following ensemble piece, Marina Villeneuve’s Reflecting Gentle; longing within the motion high quality met the singer’s crooning within the rating (“Reflecting Gentle” from Sam Phillips). That imbued one thing nostalgic, dreamy in reminiscence. Nostalgia can really feel finest in neighborhood, which the dancers created via unified motion and a way of unstated connection.
The multifaceted Aleph? Wager., from Brenna Banister in collaboration with the dancers, closed this system. Appropriately sufficient, it introduced in lots of qualities, themes and approaches of previous works. Repeated motion introduced one thing meditative. Speech within the rating supplied character and humor, which the dancers skillfully made visceral via pantomime and theatricality. Their gestures easily met the timing of speech and chimes within the soundscape (“The Linguist” by Ben Cuba).
It was all summary sufficient that I wasn’t fairly certain what precisely was occurring – aside from a obscure sense of an elder guiding, and typically scolding these of their care, in addition to a normal feeling of playfulness. But I used to be delighted nonetheless, no matter precisely might need been taking part in out earlier than us.
What was crystal clear, nevertheless, was a way of particular person persona for every persona simultaneous with group unity. These are the very best instances with pals: when all really feel a part of a collective, but additionally free to be them. That playfulness, pleasure, and connection was a stunning word on which to finish.
Regardless of the strategy, regardless of the environment, regardless of the “vibe”, it can be nice if we’re in it collectively. Thanks and congratulations to Alive Dance Collective for presenting many flavors to take pleasure in, and accomplish that in unified neighborhood: important, but too typically missing.
By Kathryn Boland of Dance Informa.
